Israel's first bio-waste power plant to be built

Doral Energy and Kibbutz Lahav are teaming up to turn the area’s agricultural waste into electricity.

Doral Energy is teaming up with Kibbutz Lahav to build a facility to generate energy from organic waste and animal waste the first of its kind in Israel. The installation will be constructed on Kibbutz Lahav property and will accept the organic waste of nearby kibbutzim.

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The investment in the installation will cost NIS 15 million. The facility will first generate 0.63 megawatt, to flow to the electric grid. Bio-gas facilities are very common across the world, specifically in Europe.

Data from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) shows that at least 3% of the global fuel demand is for bio-fuels. In Germany, for example, every cowshed is fitted with a facility that takes in the waste and outputs methane a bio-fuel.

Scotland is another leader in bio-fuels, because these fuels are considered clean-burning and allow the country to reduce its use of oil. Israel has a quota of 100 megawatt of waste-fueled energy generation which has yet to be used in full.

The Public Utilities Authority (Electricity) set a rate of NIS 0.60 per kilowatt-hour, to be raised to NIS 1 per kilowatt-hour. On the local level, there are 14 projects at varying stages to generate electricity from waste, but in the agricultural sector there are only 3 such projects.

Doral Environmental Infrastructures CEO Yaakov Tzemach said: “I hope the coordination between Doral with its experience in development and energy infrastructure and Kibbutz Lahav will set a positive example for other agricultural entities, which desperately require quality, financial solutions for the hazardous materials created in the operation of the cowsheds, chicken coops, and other agricultural products. Given the need to deal with animal and agricultural waste on one hand and the creative arrangement by the Electricity Authority on the other, there was a good opportunity to combine the two and turn the nuisance into a resource.”

Kibbutz Lahav said in a statement: “Kibbutz Lahav is always looking for energy solutions for its sector and is glad to cooperate with Doral. The joint development will provide a good opportunity to create a long term solution for the kibbutz’s needs.”